Photoelectric conversion device and image-pickup apparatus

ABSTRACT

In a photoelectric conversion device, groups of unit pixels are arranged in a well, where each of the unit pixels includes photoelectric conversion elements, an amplifier transistor, and transfer transistors. The photoelectric conversion device includes a line used to supply a voltage to the well, a well-contact part used to connect the well-voltage-supply line to the well, and transfer-control lines used to control the transfer transistors. The transfer-control lines are symmetrically arranged with respect to the well-voltage-supply line in respective regions of the unit-pixel groups.

This is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/028,334,filed Feb. 16, 2011, pending, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/050,326, filed on Mar. 18, 2008, and issued asU.S. Pat. No. 7,911,521 on Mar. 22, 2011.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a photoelectric conversion deviceincluding unit cells arranged in a well, where each of the unit cellsincludes a plurality of photoelectric conversion elements, and to animage pickup apparatus including the photoelectric conversion device.

2. Description of the Related Art

Solid-state image pickup devices manufactured by using complementarymetal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) technologies have been shown to be highperformance, multifunctional, and low power solid-state image pickupdevices. The above-described solid-state image pickup devices are alsoreferred to as CMOS image sensors. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.2001-332714 discloses a diagram (FIG. 4) showing a circuit including acontact part used to fix the potential of a well, the contact part beingprovided for each of a plurality of unit cells, where each unit cellincludes two pixels.

When a contact part used to fix the well potential is provided for eachof the plurality of unit cells, where each unit cell includes at leasttwo pixels, the symmetry of the layout of conductive lines and/orelements provided in the region of the unit cell becomes irregular,i.e., the layout is non-symmetrical, which may produce a fixed patternnoise. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-332714 does not disclose norsuggest an example of a layout of the conductive lines and/or theelements provided in the region of the unit cell. Further, there is nodiscussion in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-332714 of the effectthe symmetry of the layout of the conductive lines and/or the elementsprovided in the region of the unit cell can affect a fixed patternnoise.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides, for example, a photoelectric conversiondevice having an increased layout symmetry in the region of a unit cell.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a photoelectricconversion device including unit cells arranged in a well is provided,where each of the unit cells includes a plurality of photoelectricconversion elements, an amplifier transistor, and a plurality oftransfer transistors arranged between the photoelectric conversionelements and a gate electrode of the amplifier transistor. In thephotoelectric conversion device, each of the unit cells includes awell-voltage-supply line configured to supply a voltage to the well, awell-contact part used to connect the well-voltage-supply line, andplural transfer-control lines configured to respectively control thetransfer transistors. In the region of the unit cell, the pluraltransfer-control lines are symmetrically arranged with respect to thewell-voltage-supply line.

Other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparentfrom the following description of exemplary embodiments taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like referencecharacters designate the same or similar parts throughout the figuresthereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of a photoelectric conversiondevice according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing an example configuration of a singleunit cell.

FIG. 3 is a planar pattern figure (a layout diagram) showing an exampleconfiguration of the unit cell shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the unit cell cut along the line IV-IVshown in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a planar pattern figure (a layout diagram) showing anotherexample configuration of the unit cell shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the unit cell cut along the line VI-VIshown in FIG. 5.

FIG. 7 shows a schematic configuration of an image pickup apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the presentinvention and, together with the description, serve to explain theprinciples of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described withreference to the attached drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a photoelectricconversion device 100 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. When being used to perform imaging, the photoelectricconversion device 100 can be referred to as a solid-state image pickupdevice and/or a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) imagesensor. In FIG. 1, the photoelectric conversion device 100 includes apixel-array unit 11, a vertical-scanning circuit 12, a correlated doublesampling (CDS) circuit 13, and a horizontal-scanning circuit 14. Thephotoelectric conversion device 100 further includes an automatic gaincontrol (AGC) circuit 15, an analog-to-digital (A/D) conversion circuit16, and a timing generator 17. The above-described blocks 11 to 17 areintegrated onto a semiconductor substrate (chip) 18.

In the pixel-array unit 11, a plurality of unit cells is arranged in awell of the semiconductor substrate (corresponding to a P well 62 whichwill be described later) in a two-dimensional manner. Each of the unitcells includes a plurality of pixels (photoelectric conversionelements). Typically, one-to-one correspondence is established between asingle pixel and a single row.

The CDS circuit 13 includes a plurality of unit-CDS circuits. Each ofthe unit-CDS circuits is correspondingly arranged for every single pixelcolumn and/or plurality of pixel columns of the pixel-array unit 11, andconfigured to perform CDS processing for a signal read from a rowselected by the vertical-scanning circuit 12 via a signal-output line 33(shown in FIG. 2). More specifically, the CDS circuit 13 outputs asignal corresponding to the difference between a reset-level signal anda signal-level signal that is output from each of the pixels.Subsequently, fixed pattern noises occurring due to variations in thereset levels of the pixels are removed.

The horizontal-scanning circuit 14 sequentially selects signals storedfor each of the pixel columns after being subjected to the CDSprocessing by the CDS circuit 13. The AGC circuit 15 amplifies thesignals of the column selected by the horizontal-scanning circuit 14with an appropriate gain. The A/D-conversion circuit 16 converts ananalog signal amplified by the AGC circuit 15 into a digital signal andtransmits the digital signal to outside of the photoelectric conversiondevice 100. The timing generator 17 generates various types of timingsignals and drives the vertical-scanning circuit 12, the CDS circuit 13,the horizontal-scanning circuit 14, the AGC circuit 15, and theA/D-conversion circuit 16 by using the timing signals.

The above-described configuration is an example configuration of aphotoelectric conversion device according to an embodiment of thepresent invention. However, the present invention is not limited to theabove-described configuration. For example, the A/D-conversion circuit16 may be omitted from the photoelectric conversion device 100.According to another embodiment of the present invention, theA/D-conversion circuit 16 may be provided for each of the pixel columns.According to yet another embodiment of the present invention, aplurality of output systems may be provided, where each of the outputsystems includes a CDS circuit 13, an AGC circuit 15, etc.

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing an example configuration of a singleunit cell 20. Each of the unit cells 20 includes, for example,photoelectric conversion elements 21 a, 21 b, 21 c, and 21 d, transfertransistors 22 a, 22 b, 22 c, and 22 d, a single floating diffusion(hereinafter referred to as FD) unit 25, a single amplifier transistor23, and a single reset transistor 24 as circuit components. Here, eachof the unit cells 20 includes the four photoelectric conversion elements21 a to 21 d, that is, four pixels, for example. Here, the term “unitcell” may denote a group of unit pixels or a unit-pixel group.

Each of the unit cells 20 further includes the above-describedsignal-output line 33, transfer-control lines 30 a, 30 b, 30 c, and 30d, and a reset-signal line 31. Typically, the signal-output line 33 isshared among the unit cells 20 provided on the same column. Typically,the transfer-control lines 30 a to 30 d and the reset-signal line 31 areshared among the unit cells 20 arranged in the row direction. Each ofthe unit cells 20 includes a line used to supply a voltage to the well(hereinafter referred to as a voltage-supply line), as a conductiveline. The details on the voltage-supply line will be described later.

The anode of each of the photoelectric conversion elements 21 a to 21 dis grounded, and each of the photoelectric conversion elements 21 a to21 d performs photoelectric conversion of incident light so that theincident light is converted into electric carriers (electrons and/orpositive holes) corresponding to the amount of incident light converted,and the electric carriers are accumulated. Each of the transfertransistors 22 a to 22 d transfers electric carriers generated in thephotoelectric conversion element corresponding to the transfertransistor to the FD unit 25. More specifically, the sources of thetransfer transistors 22 a to 22 d are connected to the cathodes of thephotoelectric conversion elements 21 a to 21 d corresponding to thetransfer transistors 22 a to 22 d, and the gates of the transfertransistors 22 a to 22 d are connected to the transfer-control lines 30a to 30 d corresponding to the transfer transistors 22 a to 22 d.Further, the drains of the transfer transistors 22 a to 22 d areconnected to the FD unit 25 and the gate of the amplifier transistor 23.

The transfer transistors 22 a to 22 d are provided between thephotoelectric conversion elements 21 a to 21 d and the gate electrode ofthe single amplifier transistor 23. When the potential level of each ofthe transfer-control lines 30 a to 30 d becomes high, electric carriersaccumulated in the photoelectric conversion elements 21 a to 21 d aretransferred to the FD unit 25. The FD unit 25 accumulates electriccarriers transferred from a single photoelectric conversion elementselected from among the photoelectric conversion elements 21 a to 21 dvia the transfer transistor corresponding to the selected singlephotoelectric conversion element. The potential of the FD unit 25 isdetermined according to the amount of electric carriers transferred tothe FD unit 25.

The gate of the amplifier transistor 23 is connected to the FD unit 25,the drain of the amplifier transistor 23 is connected to a power line32, and the source of the amplifier transistor 23 is connected to thesignal-output line 33. The amplifier transistor 23 outputs a signal tothe signal-output line 33 based on the electric carriers accumulated onthe FD unit 25.

The source of the reset transistor 24 is connected to the FD unit 25 andthe gate of the amplifier transistor 23, the drain of the resettransistor 24 is connected to the power line 32, and the gate of thereset transistor 24 is connected to the reset-signal line 31. When thepotential of the reset-signal line 31 becomes high, the reset transistor24 resets the potential of the FD 25, that is, the potential of the gateof the amplifier transistor 23 to that of the power line 32.

According to the above-described embodiment, the drains of the transfertransistors 22 a to 22 d are connected to one another so that the singleFD unit 25 is used. Namely, the amplifier transistor 23 is shared amongthe photoelectric conversion elements 21 a to 21 d. Consequently, thearea occupied by the transistors provided in a single pixel can bereduced, and the aperture ratio (the ratio between the area of a singlepixel and the aperture area of the photoelectric conversion element) canbe increased. It is preferable that each of the transfer transistors 22a to 22 d, the amplifier transistor 23, and the reset transistor 24includes an N-type metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistor. However,each of the above-described transistors may include a P-type MOStransistor.

The vertical-scanning circuit 12 selects a row for reading from amongrows provided in the pixel-array unit 11. The selection of a row forreading is achieved by controlling the potential of the FD unit 25provided in the unit cell 20 to which pixels of the row selected forreading belong, via the reset transistor 24, so that the amplifiertransistor 23 is turned on, and by activating the transfer transistorsof the row selected for reading. As for other pixels provided in theunit cell 20 to which the pixels of the row selected for reading belong,the transfer transistors corresponding to the other pixels aremaintained in an inactive state. Therefore, the other pixels are notselected. Further, in a unit cell to which the row selected for readingdoes not belong, the potential of the FD unit 25 of that unit cell iscontrolled via the reset transistor 24 so that the amplifier transistor23 is not turned on.

Of the unit cells 20 arranged in the well in the two-dimensional manner,unit cells provided along the same column are connected in parallel tothe signal-output line 33. Further, the CDS circuit 13 and a transistor34 including a constant current circuit are connected to thesignal-output line 33. The gate of the transistor 34 is biased by aconstant voltage transmitted from a bias-power unit 35, and thetransistor 34 operates as the source of a constant current.

When the potential of the FD unit 25 is reset to a potential by whichthe amplifier transistor 23 is turned on in the above-described unitcell 20, the amplifier transistor 23 and the transistor 34 including theconstant current circuit form a source follower. Subsequently, thesignal corresponding to a potential obtained by decreasing the potentialof the gate of the amplifier transistor 23 by as much as a voltageobtained between the source and the gate of the amplifier transistor 23is output to the signal-output line 33.

According to the above-described photoelectric conversion device 100, awell contact is provided for each of the unit cells 20 of thepixel-array unit 11. Subsequently, it becomes possible to prevent theareas of the photoelectric conversion element and the aperture ratiofrom being reduced, and to prevent an output signal from being shaded,the shading occurring due to fluctuations in the well potential.

FIG. 3 is a planar pattern figure (a layout diagram) showing an exampleconfiguration of the unit cell 20 shown in FIG. 2. In FIG. 3, gateelectrodes 41 a to 41 d are respectively provided between photoelectricconversion regions (active regions) 42 a, 42 b, 42 c, and 42 d of thephotoelectric conversion elements 21 a to 21 d, and FD units 43 a, 43 b,43 c, and 43 d, so that gate electrodes of the transfer transistors 22 ato 22 d are formed. The FD units 43 a to 43 d are drain regions of thetransfer transistors 22 a to 22 d. A gate electrode 46, a source region47, and a drain region 45 b form the amplifier transistor 23. A gateelectrode 44, a source region 43 e, and a drain region 45 a form thereset transistor 24.

Each of the gate electrodes 41 a to 41 d, 44, and 46 may includepolysilicon. The gate electrodes 41 a to 41 d of the transfertransistors 22 a to 22 d are respectively connected to thetransfer-control lines 30 a to 30 d, which are conductive lines, viacontact parts 52 a, 52 b, 52 c, and 52 d. The gate electrode 44 of thereset transistor 24 is connected to the reset-signal line 31, which is aconductive line, via a contact part 53.

The FD units 43 a to 43 d, the gate electrode 46 of the amplifiertransistor 23, and the source region 43 e of the reset transistor 24 areelectrically connected to one another via contact parts 50 a, 50 b, 50c, 50 d, 51 a, 51 b, and 50 e, and at least one conductive line (notshown). Then, the FD units 43 a to 43 d, the gate electrode 46, and thesource region 43 e are used, as the FD unit 25. The drain region 45 a ofthe reset transistor 24 and the drain region 45 b of the amplifiertransistor 23 are connected to the power line 32, which is a conductiveline (not shown), via contact parts 54 a and 54 b. The source region 47of the amplifier transistor 23 is connected to the signal-output line33, which is a conductive line (not shown), via a contact part 55.

In the above-described embodiment, a single well-contact region 48 isprovided for the single unit cell 20. The well-contact region 48 iselectrically connected to a line 57 used to supply a voltage to a well(hereinafter referred to as a voltage-supply line 57) via a well-contactpart 56, where the voltage-supply line 57 extends in the row directionto supply a well voltage, for example, a ground-level signal.Subsequently, the voltage of the well can be fixed. The voltage-supplyline 57, the transfer-control lines 30 a to 30 d, and the reset-signalline 31 are arranged such that they are parallel to one another.

According to the above-described embodiment, in the region of each ofthe unit cells 20, the transfer-control lines 30 a to 30 d aresymmetrically arranged with respect to the voltage-supply line 57 (avirtual line 58 is provided for illustration and is discussed below).According to the above-described embodiment, therefore, the symmetry ofconductive lines provided in the region of each of the unit cells 20 isincreased, which reduces fixed pattern noises.

Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the photoelectricconversion regions (active regions) 42 b and 42 c are provided betweenthe transfer-control lines 30 b and 30 c and the voltage-supply line 57so that the transfer-control lines 30 b and 30 c and the voltage-supplyline 57 can be provided at a sufficient distance from one another.Consequently, it becomes possible to reduce the parasitic capacitancebetween the transfer-control lines 30 b and 30 c and the voltage-supplyline 57, as well as fluctuations in the potential of the voltage-supplyline 57, where the potential fluctuations occur due to fluctuations inthe potentials of the transfer-control lines 30 b and 30 c. Alsoconsequently, it becomes possible to reduce shading caused by thefluctuations in the well potential, where the shading particularlyoccurs when the photoelectric conversion device 100 operates with highspeed.

Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the amplifiertransistor 23 (the gate electrode 46, the drain region 45 b, and thesource region 47) is provided in the region of each of the unit cells 20so that the virtual line 58 extends through the gate electrode 46 of theamplifier transistor 23. Here, the virtual line 58 is parallel to thevoltage-supply line 57 and the transfer-control lines 30 a to 30 d andextends through the well-contact part 56. The above-describedconfiguration is effective to reduce irregularities in the symmetry, theirregularities caused by providing the single amplifier transistor andthe single well-contact part in the unit cell 20.

Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the tworeset-signal lines 31 adjacent to each other are symmetrically arrangedwith respect to the voltage-supply line 57 provided between the tworeset-signal lines 31. Because FIG. 3 shows the configuration of thesingle unit cell 20 only, the single reset-signal line 31 is shown. Whena plurality of the above-described unit cells 20 is arranged in aone-dimensional manner and/or a two-dimensional manner, the two adjacentreset-signal lines 31 are symmetrically arranged with respect to thevoltage-supply line 57 provided between the two adjacent reset-signallines 31. The reset-signal line 31 can be provided on an end part of theregion of each of the unit cells 20, and the reset transistor 24 (thegate electrode 44, the drain region 45 a, and the source region 43 e)can be provided on the end part of the region of each of the unit cells20. The end part denotes a part of the region of the unit cell 20, thepart being close to the boundary between the above-described unit cell20 and a different unit cell 20 adjacent to the above-described unitcell 20. More specifically, in FIG. 3, the end part becomes the boundarybetween the unit cells 20 that are adjacent to each other in the columndirection.

Further, according to the above-described embodiment, the photoelectricconversion regions 42 a to 42 d of the photoelectric conversion elements21 a to 21 d are symmetrically arranged with respect to thevoltage-supply line 57 in the region of each of the unit cells 20.Subsequently, the symmetry of layout of the unit cell 20 can further beincreased and fixed-pattern noises can be reduced.

Further, according to the above-described embodiment, thetransfer-control line and the reset-signal line, and/or thetransfer-control line and the voltage-supply line are symmetricallyarranged with respect to each of the photoelectric conversion elements.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, mirror symmetry is achievedby a part including the single photoelectric conversion element 21 a andthe single transfer transistor 22 a connected thereto, and a partincluding the other single photoelectric conversion element 21 b and theother single transfer transistor 22 b connected thereto. Further, themirror symmetry is also achieved by a part including the singlephotoelectric conversion element 21 c and the single transfer transistor22 c connected thereto, and a part including the other singlephotoelectric conversion element 21 d and the other single transfertransistor 22 d connected thereto. The mirror symmetry is also achievedby a part including the photoelectric conversion elements 21 a and 21 b,and the transfer transistors 22 a and 22 b, and a part including thephotoelectric conversion elements 21 c and 21 d and the transfertransistors 22 c and 22 d. According to the above-describedmirror-symmetrical arrangement, the length of the conductive line usedto connect the FD units provided in the unit cell to the gate of theamplifier transistor in common can be shorter than that obtained in thecase where translational-symmetrical arrangement is achieved.Consequently, the degree of liberty in arranging the amplifiertransistor and/or the reset transistor in each of the unit cells 20increases.

On the other hand, according to another embodiment of the presentinvention, the photoelectric conversion elements (the photoelectricconversion regions) may be arranged in a translational-symmetricalmanner. In FIG. 3, for example, a photoelectric conversion region havingthe same shape as that obtained by translating the photoelectricconversion region 42 a may be arranged in place of the photoelectricconversion regions 42 b and 42 d. In that case, the amplifier transistorand the reset transistor may be moved.

Hereinafter, an example where a color filter is assigned to each of thephotoelectric conversion regions under the Bayer arrangement system inthe example arrangement shown in FIG. 3 is considered. For example, if ared color filter is assigned to the photoelectric conversion region 42a, another red color filter is assigned to the photoelectric conversionregion 42 c. In that case, the arrangement relationship between theconductive lines of the photoelectric conversion region 42 a where thered color filter is assigned becomes equivalent to that betweenconductive lines of the photoelectric conversion region 42 c where thered color filter is assigned. Likewise, the arrangement relationshipbetween conductive lines of a photoelectric conversion region where adifferent color filter is assigned becomes equivalent to that betweenconductive lines of a photoelectric conversion region where anothercolor filter of the different color is also assigned. Namely, as forphotoelectric conversion regions where color filters of the same colorare assigned, the transfer-control line, and the reset-signal lineand/or the voltage-supply line of one of the photoelectric conversionregions and those of the other photoelectric conversion regions aresymmetrically arranged with respect to the photoelectric conversionregion. The above-described arrangement allows for reducing variationsin the incident-light amounts among the photoelectric conversionelements (photoelectric conversion regions) of the same color. The sameeffect can be obtained even though the photoelectric conversion elementsare arranged in a mirror-symmetrical manner or thetranslational-symmetrical manner.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the unit cell 20 cut along the line IV-IVshown in FIG. 3. According to an example shown in FIG. 4, a P well 62 isprovided in an N-type substrate 61, and photoelectric conversionelements and/or transistors forming a pixel and/or a unit cell areprovided in the P well 62. N-type regions 65 are provided as activeregions (the active regions 43 b and 43 c shown in FIG. 3) connected tothe gate electrode 46 of the amplifier transistor 23 via the contactparts 50 b and 50 c, and a conductive line (not shown).

Each of the photoelectric conversion regions 42 b and 42 c includes anN-type impurity region 63, a P+ region 64 near the surface, and part ofthe P well 62, with the part surrounding the N-type impurity region 63and the P+ region 64. A P+ region 48 is an active region (a well-contactregion) connected to the voltage-supply line 57 via the well-contactpart 56. The potential of the P well 62 is fixed to the well voltagesuch as the ground level via the voltage-supply line 57 and the P+region 48. Each of element-separation regions 66 is formed by usinglocal oxidization on silicon (LOCOS) technologies, shallow trenchisolation (STI) technologies, and so forth. The element-separationregion 66 is provided between the photoelectric conversion elementsand/or the transistors so that the elements are electrically separated.

FIG. 5 is a planar pattern figure (a layout diagram) showing anotherexample configuration of the unit cell 20 shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 6 isanother sectional view of the unit cell 20 cut along the line VI-VIshown in FIG. 5. Each of the photoelectric conversion regions 42 b and42 c includes the N-type impurity region 63, the P+ region 64 near thesurface, and the part of the P well 62, with the part surrounding theN-type impurity region 63 and the P+ region 64. A P+ region 67 is anactive region (a well-contact region) connected to the voltage-supplyline 57 via the well-contact part 56. The potential of the P well 62 isfixed to the well voltage such as the ground level via thevoltage-supply line 57 and the P+ region 67.

P+ impurity ions are implanted in the P+ region 67 at a density higherthan that in the P+ region 64 near the surface of each of thephotoelectric conversion regions 42 b and 42 c so that the photoelectricconversion regions 42 b and 42 c can be prevented from being affected bythe well-contact region. Each of the element-separation regions 66 isformed by using the local oxidization on silicon (LOCOS) technologies,the shallow trench isolation (STI) technologies, and so forth. Theelement-separation region 66 is provided between the photoelectricconversion elements and/or the transistors so that the elements areelectrically separated.

Here, in addition to the P+ region 67, an impurity region used forconnection may be formed by implanting impurity ions through a contacthole used to provide the well-contact part 56. The level of the densityof the impurity region used for connection is set to somewhere inbetween those of the densities of the P+ regions 64 and 67, for example.

Further, the P+ region 67 need not be provided. In that case, theimpurity region used for connection may be formed in the P+ region 64 byimplanting impurity ions through the contact hole used to form thecontact part 56. The use of the contact hole allows for forming animpurity region of the same size as that of the base of the contact part56, which increases the aperture ratio. Further, a depletion layer ofthe photoelectric conversion element is less affected than in the casewhere the P+ region 67 with a high impurity density is used.

According to the above-described embodiment, the photoelectricconversion elements include, at least, a first photoelectric conversionregion 42 b (a first photoelectric conversion element 21 b) and a secondphotoelectric conversion region 42 c (a second photoelectric conversionelement 21 c). Further, in the region of each of the unit cells 20, thefirst photoelectric conversion region 42 b and the second photoelectricconversion region 42 c are provided in the same active region (a regionprovided between the two element-separation regions 66, as shown in FIG.5). Further, the well-contact region 67 (the well-contact part 56) isalso provided in the same active region as that where the firstphotoelectric conversion region 42 b and the second photoelectricconversion region 42 c are provided. Thus, the well-contact region 67(the well-contact part 56) is provided so that the aperture ratio isprevented from being decreased.

In each of the configurations exemplified in the above-describedembodiments in detail, each of the unit cells 20 includes four pixels.However, the present invention can be used for a configuration whereevery unit cell includes at least two pixels.

According to each of the above-described embodiments, each of theconductive lines has a predetermined width specified by a semiconductorprocess and/or design used. However, the shape of each of the conductivelines may be modified so that the width of part of the conductive lineis increased, which constitutes another embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 7 shows the schematic configuration of an image pickup apparatus400 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The imagepickup apparatus 400 includes a solid-state image pickup device 1004typified by the above-described photoelectric conversion device 100. Anoptical image of a subject is formed on the imaging surface of thesolid-state image pickup device 1004 through a lens 1002. A barrier 1001can be provided outside the lens 1002 to protect the lens 1002 andfunction as a main switch. The lens 1002 may include an aperture 1003used to adjust the amount of light emitted from the lens 1002. Imagingsignals output from the solid-state image pickup device 1004 over atleast two channels are subjected to various types of correctionprocessing, clamp processing, etc., through an imaging-signal-processingcircuit 1005. The imaging signals output from theimaging-signal-processing circuit 1005 over the at least two channelsare subjected to analog-to-digital conversion in an A/D converter 1006.Image data output from the A/D converter 1006 is subjected to varioustypes of correction processing, data compression, etc., through asignal-processing unit 1007. Each of the solid-state image pickup device1004, the imaging-signal-processing circuit 1005, the A/D converter1006, and the signal-processing unit 1007 operates according to a timingsignal generated by a timing-generation unit 1008.

Each of the imaging-signal-processing circuit 1005, the A/D converter1006, the signal-processing unit 1007, and the timing-generation unit1008 may be provided on the same chip as that where the solid-stateimage pickup device 1004 is provided. Each of the above-describedcomponents of the image pickup apparatus 400 is controlled by a unit1009 configured to generally control the image pickup apparatus 400 andperform calculations. The image pickup apparatus 400 further includes amemory unit 1010 used to temporarily store image data and an interface(I/F) unit 1011 that is used to control a recording medium 1012 torecord and/or read image data onto and/or from the recording medium1012. The recording medium 1012 includes, for example, a semiconductormemory, and can be inserted and/or removed into and/or from therecording-medium-control I/F unit 1011. The image pickup apparatus 400may further include an external interface (I/F) unit 1013 used tocommunicate with an external computer, etc.

Next, operations of the image pickup apparatus 400 shown in FIG. 7 willbe described. When the barrier 1001 is opened, the main power, the powerof a control system, and the powers of imaging-system circuits includingthe A/D converter 106, etc., are turned on in sequence. After that, thegeneral-control-and-calculation unit 1009 minimizes the value of theaperture 1003 to control the exposure amount. A signal output from thesolid-state image pickup device 1004 is transmitted through theimaging-signal-processing circuit 1005 and presented to the A/Dconverter 1006. The A/D converter 1006 performs A/D conversion for thesignal and transmits digital data obtained through the A/D conversion tothe signal-processing unit 1007. The signal-processing unit 1007processes the digital data, presents the processed data to thegeneral-control-and-calculation unit 1009. Thegeneral-control-and-calculation unit 1009 performs calculations todetermine the exposure amount. The general-control-and-calculation unit1009 controls the aperture 1003 based on the determined exposure amount.

Next, the general-control-and-calculation unit 1009 retrieves ahigh-frequency component from the signal that is output from thesolid-state image pickup device 1004 and that is processed by thesignal-processing unit 1007, and calculates the distance between theimage pickup apparatus 400 and the subject based on the high-frequencycomponent. After that, the general-control-and-calculation unit 100drives the lens 1002 and determines whether a focus is achieved. If itis determined that no focus is achieved, thegeneral-control-and-calculation unit 100 drives the lens 1002 again andcalculates the above-described distance.

After it is determined that the focus is achieved, a main exposure isstarted. After the main exposure is finished, an imaging signal outputfrom the solid-state image pickup device 1004 is subjected to correctionprocessing, etc., in the imaging-signal-processing circuit 1005,A/D-converted into image data by the A/D converter 1006, and processedby the signal-processing unit 1007. The general-control-and-calculationunit 1009 accumulates the image data processed by the signal-processingunit 1007 on the memory unit 1010.

After that, the image data accumulated on the memory unit 1010 isrecorded onto the recording medium 1012 via the recording-medium-controlI/F unit 1011 under the control of the general-control-and-calculationunit 1009. Further, the image data can be presented and processed by acomputer, etc., via the external-I/F unit 1013.

Here, the image pickup apparatus 400 can be used, for example, as adigital-still camera, a video camera, and a camera module mounted on aterminal device including a mobile phone, etc.

While the present invention has been described with reference toexemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is notlimited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of thefollowing claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as toencompass all modifications and equivalent structures and functions.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Application No.2007-107625 filed on Apr. 16, 2007, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

What is claimed is:
 1. A solid-state image pickup device comprising: afirst photoelectric conversion element including a first semiconductorregion of a first conductivity type; a first transfer gate; a secondphotoelectric conversion element including a second semiconductor regionof the first conductivity type; and a second transfer gate, wherein thefirst semiconductor region and the second semiconductor region areprovided in a third semiconductor region of a second conductivity type,wherein a contact part is electrically connected to the thirdsemiconductor region without an intervening semiconductor region of thefirst conductivity type, wherein the first semiconductor region, thesecond semiconductor region, and the contact part are provided in anactive region, and wherein no element separation region is formedbetween the contact part and the first semiconductor region, and noelement separation region is formed between the contact part and thesecond semiconductor region.
 2. The solid-state image pickup deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the first photoelectric conversion elementfurther includes a fourth semiconductor region of the secondconductivity type provided on the first semiconductor region, whereinthe second photoelectric conversion element further includes a fifthsemiconductor region of the second conductivity type provided on thesecond semiconductor region, wherein the fourth semiconductor region andthe fifth semiconductor region are electrically connected to each other,and wherein, in a planar view, the contact part is arranged between thefourth semiconductor region and the fifth semiconductor region.
 3. Thesolid-state image pickup device according to claim 2, further comprisinga sixth semiconductor region of the second conductivity type providedbetween, in a planar view, the contact part and at least one of thefourth semiconductor region and the fifth semiconductor region.
 4. Thesolid-state image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein the firstphotoelectric conversion element and the first transfer gate arearranged to have mirror symmetry to the second photoelectric conversionelement and the second transfer gate.
 5. The solid-state image pickupdevice according to claim 1, wherein the first photoelectric conversionelement and the first transfer gate are arranged to have translationalsymmetry to the second photoelectric conversion element and the secondtransfer gate.
 6. The solid-state image pickup device according to claim1, further comprising: a first floating diffusion unit; and a secondfloating diffusion unit, wherein the first transfer gate is providedbetween the first photoelectric conversion element and the firstfloating diffusion unit, and wherein the second transfer gate isprovided between the second photoelectric conversion element and thesecond floating diffusion unit.
 7. The solid-state image pickup deviceaccording to claim 6, wherein the first floating diffusion unit and thesecond floating diffusion unit are arranged linearly.
 8. The solid-stateimage pickup device according to claim 1, wherein, in a planar view, noelement separation regions are formed between the contact part and thefirst semiconductor region or between the contact part and the secondsemiconductor region using local oxidization on silicon or shallowtrench isolation.
 9. An image pickup system comprising: the solid-stateimage pickup device according to claim 1; and a signal-processing unit.10. The solid-state image pickup device according to claim 1, wherein ina planar view, the active region is surrounded by element separationregions.
 11. The solid-state image pickup device according to claim 1,further comprising a third photoelectric conversion element and a fourthphotoelectric conversion element.
 12. The solid-state image pickupdevice according to claim 1, wherein the first transfer gate and thesecond transfer gate are controlled by transfer-control lines differentfrom each other.
 13. The solid-state image pickup device according toclaim 1, wherein the first semiconductor region, the secondsemiconductor region, and the first contact part are provided in theactive region between element separation regions, and the elementseparation regions are formed using local oxidization on silicon orshallow trench isolation.
 14. A solid-state image pickup devicecomprising: a first photoelectric conversion element including a firstsemiconductor region of a first conductivity type; a first transfergate; a second photoelectric conversion element including a secondsemiconductor region of the first conductivity type; and a secondtransfer gate, wherein the first semiconductor region and the secondsemiconductor region are provided in a third semiconductor region of asecond conductivity type, wherein a contact part which supplies a groundlevel is electrically connected to the third semiconductor region,wherein the first semiconductor region, the second semiconductor region,and the contact part are provided in an active region between elementseparation regions, and wherein, in a planar view, no element separationregion is formed between the contact part and the first semiconductorregion, and no element separation region is formed between the contactpart and the second semiconductor region.
 15. The solid-state imagepickup device according to claim 14, wherein the element separationregions are formed by local oxidation on silicon technologies or shallowtrench isolation technologies.
 16. An image pickup system comprising:the solid-state image pickup device according to claim 14; and asignal-processing unit.
 17. A solid-state image pickup devicecomprising: a first photoelectric conversion element including a firstsemiconductor region of a first conductivity type; a secondphotoelectric conversion element including a second semiconductor regionof the first conductivity type; a third semiconductor region of a secondconductivity type; a fourth semiconductor region of the secondconductivity type, having a impurity concentration higher than that ofthe third semiconductor region; and a contact part, wherein the firstsemiconductor region, and the second semiconductor region and the fourthsemiconductor region are provided in the third semiconductor region,wherein the contact part is in contact with the fourth semiconductorregion, and wherein the first semiconductor region, the secondsemiconductor region, and the fourth semiconductor region are providedin the same active region.
 18. The solid-state image pickup deviceaccording to claim 17, further comprising a fifth and sixthsemiconductor regions of the first conductive type, wherein electriccarriers generated in the first photoelectric conversion element aretransferred to the fifth semiconductor region and electric carriersgenerated in the second photoelectric conversion element are transferredto the sixth semiconductor region, and wherein the fifth and sixthsemiconductor regions are arranged in the third semiconductor region.19. The solid-state image pickup device according to claim 18, furthercomprising an element separation region arranged between the fifth andsixth semiconductor regions.
 20. The solid-state image pickup deviceaccording to claim 19, wherein the element separation region is formedby local oxidation on silicon technologies or shallow trench isolationtechnologies.
 21. The solid-state image pickup device according to claim19, further comprising a seventh semiconductor region of the secondconductivity type arranged on the first semiconductor region, and incontact with the fourth semiconductor region.
 22. An image pickup systemcomprising: the solid-state image pickup device according to claim 17;and a signal-processing unit.
 23. A solid-state image pickup devicecomprising: a first photoelectric conversion element including a firstsemiconductor region of a first conductivity type; a first floatingdiffusion unit including a semiconductor region of the firstconductivity type; a first transfer gate; a second photoelectricconversion element including a second semiconductor region of the firstconductivity type; a second transfer gate; a third semiconductor regionof a second conductivity type; a first contact part; and a secondcontact part, wherein the first semiconductor region and the secondsemiconductor region are provided in the third semiconductor region,wherein the first contact part is provided on the third semiconductorregion, and the second contact part is provided on the semiconductorregion of the first floating diffusion unit, wherein the firstsemiconductor region, the second semiconductor region, and the firstcontact part are provided in an active region, and wherein, in a planarview, no element separation region is formed between the first contactpart and the first semiconductor region, and no element separationregion is formed between the first contact part and the secondsemiconductor region.
 24. The solid-state image pickup device accordingto claim 23, wherein the first semiconductor region, the secondsemiconductor region, and the first contact part are provided in theactive region between element separation regions, and the elementseparation regions are formed by local oxidation on silicon technologiesor shallow trench isolation technologies.
 25. An image pickup systemcomprising: the solid-state image pickup device according to claim 23;and a signal-processing unit.
 26. A solid-state image pickup devicecomprising: a first photoelectric conversion element including a firstN-type semiconductor region; a first transfer gate; a secondphotoelectric conversion element including a second N-type semiconductorregion; and a second transfer gate, wherein the first N-typesemiconductor region and the second N-type semiconductor region areprovided in a P-type semiconductor region, wherein a contact part iselectrically connected to the P-type semiconductor region without anintervening N-type semiconductor region, wherein the first N-typesemiconductor region, the second N-type semiconductor region, and thecontact part are provided in an active region, and wherein, in a planarview, no element separation region is formed between the contact partand the first N-type semiconductor region, and no element separationregion is formed between the contact part and the second N-typesemiconductor region.